Here are 20 articles on medical research study findings from the week of June 8.
1. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a mid-stage trial to test the efficacy of a century-old tuberculosis vaccine on reversing type 1 diabetes. Read more.
2. Bioengineers at Rice University in Houston developed a microendoscope that nearly doubled the sensitivity of esophageal cancer screenings in clinical studies and could eventually eliminate the need for biopsies. Read more.
3. A new report in the journal Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection revealed preparedness levels in institutions around the world for managing suspect cases of the Ebola virus is often not adequate. Read more.
4. A paper published in Clinical Microbiology and Infection found the introduction of routine delivered consistent bedside infectious disease counseling following patient notification of positive blood culture is more effective than current IDC standards. Read more.
5. New research shows hospitals in the 340B drug pricing program care for nearly twice as many low-income patients and shoulder a significantly higher burden of uncompensated care than hospitals not participating in the program. Read more.
6. An automated hand hygiene training system improved the hand-washing technique of healthcare workers, but not their compliance rates, in one recent study. Read more.
7. A new study determined the effectiveness of using wet wipes to eliminate bacteria in homes and hospitals is hugely variable and the use of the wipes could be doing more to spread infection than mitigate it. Read more.
8. Hospitals recognized for nursing excellence through the Magnet program tend to have better patient outcomes but do not continuously improve after gaining recognition, according to a recent study in Health Affairs. Read more.
9. A Joint Commission report outlined the 10 most common causes of wrong-patient, wrong-site or wrong-procedure errors. Read more.
10. After Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore implemented a quality improvement program, patients undergoing colon and rectal operations at the hospital experienced shorter hospitalizations, reduced infection rates and lower hospital costs, according to one study. Read more.
11. A toxin secreted by Vibrio vulnificus, a Gram-negative bacterium associated with sepsis, may prevent the growth of cancerous tumors, according to a new study by scientists at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago. Read more.
12. The focus on patient satisfaction and the surveys designed to measure it could actually lead to a decrease in care quality and an increase in costs, according to recent report from The Hastings Center. Read more.
13. Ever since routine immunization against rotavirus launched in 2006, the U.S. has seen a marked drop in the number of infants and young children hospitalized with gastroenteritis, a recent study in JAMA found. Read more.
14. Venous thromboembolism rates after colorectal surgery rarely happen, and the rate of VTE incidence has remain unchanged even though clinicians are increasingly using pre- and post-surgical prevention therapies, according to a report in JAMA Surgery. Read more.
15. A scoring system based on patient demographics, overall health and severity of acute illness at time of admission to a hospital seems to accurately estimate a patient's risk of dying within a year of hospitalization, a new study suggests. Read more.
16. A new study suggests that some of the other microscopic inhabitants of our nasal cavities may provide valuable defense in edging out their harmful neighbors, Staphylococcus auerus. Read more.
17. Azithromycin — a common antibiotic sold commercially as Zithromax Z-Pak — can effectively kill several multidrug-resistant bacteria, according to a recent study. Read more.
18. A recent report from The Leapfrog Group found hospitals have been improving hand hygiene practices, but in 2014, one in four still had not implemented all the safe practices and policies recommended for proper hand hygiene. Read more.
19. Conducting twice-yearly mass nasal screenings on hemodialysis patients who are at high risk for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in an area of low MRSA endemicity may not be cost-effective, according to recent research. Read more.
20. Proton pump inhibitors have an adverse effect on vascular functions and increase heart attack risk, according to a recent study. Read more.